Safety in battery manufacturing through long-term testing: Innovative dry cleanroom certificates for igus e-chains

The igus e-chains have now proven their suitability for the dry-cleaning room also in long-term testing, and have received two innovative certificates from the Fraunhofer IPA. (Source: igus GmbH)

Already two years ago, igus presented the E6.29, the first certified energy chain for the dry cleanroom. To provide its customers with long-term security, the motion plastics specialist commissioned the Fraunhofer IPA to conduct a test to investigate the aging behavior of its e-chains in the dry cleanroom – with a positive result. Now, the company has jointly developed new certificates with the IPA, confirming the suitability of the energy chains E6, e-skin flat, e-skin soft, and easy chain E14 for the dry cleanroom in long-term testing.

High purity is essential in semiconductor and battery manufacturing. As these technologies need to deliver more power, and in as small a size as possible, they become more sensitive. Consequently, the requirements for the production environments increase, which are achieved through the combination of dry and cleanroom conditions. However, not all machine components withstand these demanding environmental conditions. "In the dry cleanroom, many systems have a short lifespan and need to be replaced after two to three months," explains Kira Weller, product manager for e-chains at igus. "Particulate emission can increase significantly due to the dryness, as the materials are often not designed for dry conditions and become brittle." For this reason, igus tested its portfolio of cleanroom-compatible energy chains, such as e-skin soft, e-skin flat, and E6, in this dry environment. "Together with the Fraunhofer IPA, we have now developed two innovative certificates that verify the durability and purity of these e-chains in a dry environment with a relative humidity of less than one percent," says Kira Weller.

High purity over 10 months and 15 million double strokes

The two new certificates are divided into "Pre-aging" and "Aging behavior." For the "Aging behavior" certificate, two of the energy guidance systems, E6.J and the e-skin flat system, were tested over a period of 10 months in the dry room. During this time, they completed over 15 million double strokes. Every two months, the systems were examined and certified according to ISO class. The e-skin flat successfully withstood the double strokes and received the highest ISO class 4 certification. A higher certification is not possible because the test environment (ISO class 3 dry cleanroom with less than one percent relative humidity, corresponding to a dew point of -40°C) does not permit it. The E6.J also maintained this result over 4 months but ultimately ended with ISO class 5, which is a very good result for battery manufacturing.

The "Pre-aging" certificate, commissioned for the energy guidance systems e-skin soft and easy chain E14, certifies the systems after 15 million double strokes and 10 months in the dry room. Here too, the igus e-chains received the best possible certification, ISO class 4. Thanks to these long-term studies and certifications by the Fraunhofer IPA, igus can confirm that the energy guidance systems exhibit very low particulate emission and are thus safe for automation in the dry cleanroom.